The City Nature Challenge is a global competition between cities to document biodiversity in regions around the world, taking place April 25-28. Ranger Jacque will lead a hike with stops along the way to take phone photos of flowers, trees, cacti, birds, bugs, fungi and more to boost the number of observations for Team Phoenix. The route is 2 miles on the easy Merkle Trail and moderate Vista Trail, the latter of which is a half mile trail to a hilltop lookout with 168 ft. elevation gain. Expect rocky and fairly steep terrain going up and down the hill, while the rest of the hike is on a barrier-free, level trail. You can prepare for this hike by downloading the free iNaturalist app at home on wi-fi and registering your account before you come to the park. For more information about the City Nature Challenge visit City Nature Challenge, and for iNaturalist visit A Community for Naturalists ยท iNaturalist. Wear closed-toe shoes and sun protection (hat, sunscreen, sunglasses) and bring plenty of water. Be sure to bring your phone fully charged to take photos. You can upload photos to the app in real time, or later at home. Restrooms are available at the trailhead.
MEETING LOCATION: Area 6
Map of Meeting Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/Ps3agU2K2TCNmMCx5
No registration required.
This event is part of Citizen Science Month, in which participating in community science, like through iNaturalist on this hike with us, is a part of a global goal of collecting One Million Acts of Science to further research. You can learn more about the global effort on citizensciencemonth.org.